I FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to fishing lures and more specifically to fishing lures known as "JIGS" which may employ a double skirt design.
II. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Fishing lures commonly known as "JIGS" are well known in the prior art. The jig-type fishing lures are characterized as having a lead head and a flexible tail or skirt attached thereto. These jig-type fishing lures are known in the prior art to suffer from two basic deficiencies. First, the tying or otherwise affixing of the skirt material to the outside of the head or housing of the fishing lure has not been adequately secure and the skirts are sometimes lost. Secondly, the wrappings or other material used to cover and secure the skirt to the housing have greatly distracted from the realism of the lure, thereby causing a concomitant reduction in the effectiveness of the artificial lure.
The majority of fish strikes which occur with this type of lure are "head-strikes" because of the tendency of the fish to attack that portion of the lure which shines or reflects incident light. When using prior art designs for this type of fishing lure a large percentage of these head strikes result in lost catches because the hook barb generally extends several inches behind the lure head. As the fish strikes the forward end of the lure, the barbed hook is not properly engaged in the mouth of the fish.
Small jig-type lures partially overcome this deficiency by having the head molded around the shank of the hook. This type of construction cannot be employed when fishing for the larger species of fish. The weight of the head section of the lure must be permitted to slide away from the hook on the leader as the fish strikes the barbed hook. If the head section is not free to slide away from the hook, the additional mass of the head section will assist in tearing the hook from the mouth of the fish as it jumps and thrashes in an effort to remove the hook.
The present invention also includes an improved structure for attaching the double skirt to the body of the lure. In this manner the hair or skin-like material forming the skirt is attached to the housing of the lure so as to longitudinally separate the two ends of the skirt and clamp them firmly into an extended posture at the forward point of attachment. This technique presents a fuller, more life-like appearance and produces more skirt undulation or tail weaving action when the lure is pulled through the water.
Therefore, the first object of the present invention is to provide a structure which allows the shank end of the barbed hook to be accommodated within the head of the fishing lure to reduce head-strike losses.
A second object of the present invention is to provide an improved method of lure assembly which provides additional clamping action for securing the skirt material while further improving the overall realism and therefore the effectiveness of the lure.